Private wealth management, or private banking, is a branch of the investment management industry that specializes in servicing high net worth clients. Private bankers evaluate their clients' financial needs, recommend investments and assist with other matters, such as tax planning. Associates typically are hired from business school or as lateral hires with multiple years of industry experience. The role is highly entrepreneurial as associates must attract new ones as well as serve existing ones. In many cases, associates are incentivized to sell proprietary financial products, such as in-house investment funds. The starting base salary before bonuses for an associate at a major Wall Street firm is approximately $95,000.

Selling Ability

Associates are expected to bring in new clients and assets on a regular basis. The interviewer may ask you to provide specific examples of your persuasive ability. Discuss your approach, what objections you faced and how you overcame them successfully. If you don't have private wealth management experience, cite examples from other professional interactions that showcase your triumphs. The interviewer may also be interested in how you intend to grow your clientele. Be prepared to provide a road map of the different avenues that you will pursue. For example, you might choose to network with high net worth individuals within a specific industry or respond to events in your local area that result in large payments to individuals, such as the sale of a company.

Interpersonal Skills

Private wealth management professionals must be socially intelligent to succeed. The interviewer may ask you to discuss examples where you adapted in response to the needs of your clients, colleagues or other collaborators. Flexibility is important as high net worth clients come from all walks of life and require individualized approaches. You may also be asked why potential clients might choose to work with you as compared to other equally qualified private bankers. Possible topics for discussion might be your personality, working style or relevant credos that will make you a successful private banker.

Market Knowledge

A private banker isn't worth his salt if he doesn't have a pulse of the markets. The interviewer may ask you to rattle off the current price of different stock market indexes, such as the S&P; 500, Nasdaq and Dow Jones, as well as their performance over different time periods. Similarly, you may be asked about fixed income market subjects, such as the 10-year Treasury bond yield and the Federal Reserve's interest rate policies. Be prepared to share your convictions about the financial markets, including an investment pitch. For example, you might believe that the stock market is overvalued and suggest switching into fixed income. The interviewer may even ask for specific recommendations and rationale of individual securities or investment funds that you invest in.

Entrepreneurial Spirit

The interviewer will look for evidence of initiative and entrepreneurial spirit. You may be asked to discuss a situation where you went beyond the call of duty in your past work or volunteered certain services. The interviewer might also ask for examples where you headed a project or established a company, a club or other organization. Since private bankers are expected to be self-reliant and creative in achieving their goals, you may also be asked to discuss situations where you achieved challenging goals with limited resources.

About the Author

Giulio Rocca's background is in investment banking and management consulting, including advising Fortune 500 companies on mergers and acquisitions and corporate strategy. He also founded GradSchoolHeaven.com, an online resource for graduate school applicants. He holds a Bachelor of Science in economics from the University of Pennsylvania, a Master of Arts in English from the University of Hawaii at Manoa, and a Master of Business Administration from Harvard University.